NORMAN, Okla. – Jalon Moore scored 20 points and
Jeremiah Fears tallied 18 points and eight rebounds to lead Oklahoma, but the Sooners fell to No. 17 Kentucky 83-82 Wednesday night at Lloyd Noble Center.
Oklahoma (17-11, 4-11 SEC) led 68-63 with 9:40 remaining and took an 80-79 lead on a
Glenn Taylor Jr. 3-pointer with 1:45 to go, but Kentucky (19-9, 8-7) scored four of the last six points, including a basket with 6 seconds left to win in its first-ever game in Norman.
The Sooners had a shot to win in the final seconds, but Fears' floating jumper was blocked.
Oklahoma trailed 43-41 at halftime and was down 56-49 with 14:48 left to play but closed to 58-57 by the 13:27 mark on a
Brycen Goodine 3-pointer.
Kobe Elvis made a three with 12:12 remaining to tie the game at 60-60.
The Sooners took a 64-63 lead with 10:44 remaining when Goodine stole an inbounds pass and fed it to Fears who made a driving layup. OU's lead grew to 68-63 on a layup by Taylor with 9:40 to play.
Kentucky tied the game, 71-71, with 6:46 to play, and the game stayed close the rest of the way. Fears made a floater with 2:22 remaining to tie the game, 77-77, and Moore gave the Sooners an 82-81 lead on a pair of free throws with 20 seconds remaining.
Oklahoma shot 53% from the field and 40% from beyond the arc in the game, and made 7 of 13 3-pointers while shooting 58% from the field in the second half. It marked the sixth time in eight SEC home games for the Sooners to shoot better than 50%. The Wildcats shot 50% from the field and made just 7 of 23 3-point attempts in the game.
Kentucky, which represented Oklahoma's eighth ranked opponent in nine games (the first time OU ever played eight in a nine-game stretch), entered the night with a +3.4 average rebounding margin, but the Sooners posted a 34-31 advantage on the glass.
The Sooners play at Ole Miss (19-9, 8-7 SEC) on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT. The game will be televised by ESPN2.